Aftermath
by degrassian98
Summary: Zoe kissed Grace. She kissed her. A girl. And then they went their separate ways. Now school is back in session, and they're going to have to figure out what that kiss means, and if they can ever be together. Edit: The first four chapters were originally written after Don't Look Back, now it will be an AU Degrassi Next Class S1 fic, with a focus on Zoe and Grace.
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE / Grace's POV.

Grace slammed her hand into her alarm clock knocking it into her messy floor the moment it began screaming for her to wake up. The raven-haired female whimpered slightly, mostly because of the early time, but also because she hurt her hand in the process.

"Fuck, I don't want to do this." the raven-haired girl spoke under her breath, referring to facing everyone at Degrassi. She knew that Zoe Rivas would expect some sort of answer or something to the kiss that was planted upon Grace on the beach, and she knew that although she could ignore the texts that poured in from Zig, Tiny, Maya and Miles's texts about the kiss that they'd all apparently witnessed, she couldn't really do the same in person. At least not as effectively.

Filled with a sense of dread, her feet hit the floor and she stripped the oversized tee that she slept in every single night off of her body and replaced it with a random black top that she found on her bed. Grace sniffed it slightly after putting it on, and decided that the slight stale smell wasn't anything that couldn't be masked by her giant jacket that held onto a million different colognes and perfumes from the thirty years that it'd been in the Cardinal family.

Grace finished getting dressed and glanced in the mirror for half a second to draw a thick line on her eyelid and run a brush lazily through her hair, which was about the extent of her beauty routine. It worked for her. She didn't know why girls spent hours in front of a mirror. The mere sight of herself kind of brought a sick feeling to her stomach, and she couldn't imagine staring at herself for so long just so she could have sparkly eyelids and rosy cheeks.

Her eyes rolled as she entered her kitchen to find her sunshine-filled tenner sister sitting at the table yapping on about some shit that didn't matter to a friend on FaceTime. She despised the fact that her little sister reminded her slightly of Zoe, and she despised even more that this comparison made her sister slightly more tolerable.

"Can you shut up for half a second so I can think about what I might want to eat for breakfast?" Grace grumbled, trying to ignore the new-found sensitivity toward her sister which was running through her mind.

Her little sister furrowed her brows. "I don't get why you're like this, Grace. You used to be nice."

Grace cringed at that statement, not allowing herself to even think about it anymore. She just grabbed a bagel and headed out for her walk to school.

She arrived at Degrassi and almost immediately felt her heart begin to beat. Why was she like this over Zoe Rivas of all people? She'd told herself after a romance went wrong in her freshman year that she'd never date in high school again. It'd just never work, and she wasn't into looking like a complete dumbass when things went down and everyone knew that she'd gotten her hopes up and her heart broken.

"Hey, lover girl." Maya came out of nowhere and teased.

"I will end you." Grace replied, half-kidding, half-not.

Maya raised her hands up, mimicking a surrender. "Fine, fine. I just didn't know you had the hots for Zoe Rivas. It's an interesting...development." Grace could tell that Maya was trying her best to be supportive or something, despite the fact that there was obviously deep-rooted dislike between the brunette actress and the blonde musician. Grace had witnessed the way that the two teen girls glared at one another every once in a while, and she'd absolutely witnessed what Zig had to deal with because of their B.S. chick-on-chick drama. The pettiness just seemed far too unnecessary to Grace.

"Have you guys texted or anything, or will this be the first time you guys see each other since you kissed?" Maya questioned.

"First time. Not that it matters. Stop acting like it's this big thing. The girl kissed me, I didn't kiss back. There's not going to be some teen drama going on here. I might not even give her the time of day." Grace lied. She was going to give Zoe all the time in the world, most likely. She'd have to see if Zoe had reverted back to the snotty brat she was before the summer or not.

Zig and Tiny arrived and before the two could even sputter a word about Zoe, Grace flipped her middle finger up at them, which made the immature teen boys giggle like children.

"Why'd you ignore our texts?" Tiny teased. "Too busy sexting with the cheerleader queen?"

Grace rolled her eyes. "Whatever, losers." She bypassed the group of her so-called friends, and headed to class early.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO / Zoe's POV

Texts had poured in the morning after Zoe kissed Grace at the beach. The girls from the Power Squad along with people she barely even knew were dying to get the scoop on what happened, and it made Zoe feel great again. Finally, she was the girl that everyone wanted to know everything about again. Finally, she wasn't the butt of every joke and insult. She was practically glowing.

No more crap about Degrassi Nudes, no more chatter in the hallway about her getting sexually assaulted, no more of that. She wouldn't allow it. This year was going to be different. If they still gossiped, at least it wouldn't be about something bad. It'd be about Grace, who she enjoyed thinking about. It was fresh air, and it made Zoe feel like she was finally not drowning.

As Zoe got ready for the first day of school, she danced around her room to a song that Grace had overplayed during their study sessions. She really liked Grace. Even though she'd never liked a girl before, she was sure that she felt for Grace a way that she'd never even imagined feeling for any other guy. Drew Torres, Zig Novak and Miles Hollingsworth included.

Zoe slipped on a little black dress and covered it with a slightly oversized blue flannel that she'd bought on impulse while back-to-school shopping, sure that Grace would notice it and possibly like it. She donned herself with her prettiest white-gold accessories to girl the outfit up a bit, and voila, the look was done. The new Zoe. Still girly and sweet, but with an _edge_ that demanded to be noticed.

This year would be different. The tiny brunette knew that for sure. And another thing she knew for sure, she was going to win Grace Cardinal's hardened heart if it was the last thing she did.

"Zo, you're going to be late to school if you don't hurry up. Your friend Tristan is standing outside waiting to walk with you to Degrassi. Hurry up." Zoe's mother called from another room.

A light grin played across Zoe's features as she hurriedly slipped on a pair of trusty black flats and grabbed her new school bag. This was the end of an era, and the beginning of a new one. The school year was finally going to start, and there'd be nothing to hold her back anymore.

Zoe practically skipped out of her front door with an obvious smile that nobody could wipe from her face. She noticed her best friend Tristan standing there with his arms crossed, looking upset over something.

"Come on, Tris. It's the first day. Cheer up. What could bring you down on this..." She paused, breathing in the fresh still-summer air. " _glorious_ day?" She knew she was being a bit more than dramatic and annoying, but she couldn't help it. This annoyingly happy version of herself was honestly how she felt.

"You're really embracing this whole 'pretending to be gay to get attention' thing, aren't you, Zoe? I can't believe you're gonna act like this. The whole world knows you're boy-crazy, and everyone is gonna see through this desperate attempt to get noticed. I honestly just... thought you were better than this. I didn't think you'd trivialize being gay just to stir up gossip. You're really gonna mess with Grace's feelings here. I knew you were a shitty person, but I thought you were above this." Tristan began storming off.

Zoe was in shock. That seemingly permanent smile had officially been wiped away. She knew that none of what Tristan was saying was true, and that he was probably overreacting, but it still stung.

"You're going to tell me how I feel? You're going to act like being gay is a choice - like it's a phase? I thought _you_ were better than that." Zoe paused, waiting for Tristan to turn around and apologize. When he didn't she kept following him and continued her rant. "I'm not... like, officially gay or anything, I mean, I don't know what I am, but I feel something for Grace that I've never felt for any guy before. She makes me feel...good. Happy. She makes me a better person. This summer with her was one of the best of my life. I've never felt more like myself than I did when I was with her. And you're going to just dismiss that and make me feel like I'm wrong for liking a girl? I thought out of all the people who were going to treat me like crap and make me feel like whatever I'm feeling wasn't valid, you wouldn't be one of them."

A look of pure shock seemed to wash over Tristan's features as he was rendered completely speechless. That's exactly what Zoe thought would happen.

They walked the rest of the trek in complete silence, Tristan finding something super-interesting on his phone as he tried to avoid Zoe, and Zoe putting her headphones in and listening to the song that Grace had played for her once again, using it to cheer herself up. She wouldn't let anyone ruin her perfect Junior year. Not a chance in the world.


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3 / Grace's POV

The first day of Degrassi was always a pain in the ass to Grace. This was the third one she'd attended, and so far, they'd all been annoying. People shrieking at the top of their lungs when they saw their friends, as if they hadn't seen or talked to them all summer, teachers acting fake-nice when you knew they'd turn into hardasses who were sick and tired of their job by week 3, and worst of all, the dreaded "How was your summer?" that everyone had to ask. It was useless. Nobody actually _cared_ how anyone else's summer was. It was just an excuse to yammer on about their's.

'Just go on and brag. Don't make me waste my breath.' was always Grace's point of view on the matter.

She put on the meanest mug she possibly could as she trudged down the obnoxiously loud halls of Degrassi, hoping that it'd ward away any losers who wanted to talk to her for some reason. She heard people whispering about the kiss as she walked past, which only made her walk faster. "How is Rivas in bed anyway? I hope she's less of a dead fish than she was in that video from the party." Some guy remarked as Grace passed, and it took every fiber in her being to not pulverize the stranger right then and there.

Grace really wasn't that violent of a person, and she wasn't one to get in fights, especially not in school, but that comment almost made her change her mind on that. She knew how to kill a man in about fifty different ways, but she never thought she'd actually want to use that knowledge until that moment.

Her expression quickly changed when a specific chipper obnoxious person appeared in front of her. Zoe Rivas. There she was, looking fucking beautiful for no reason. How did that even happen? How did one person look so... Grace had to stop thinking and admiring, because the girl was talking.

"I know I said I could wait to hear what you had to say, but the waiting was agonizing. Can we... maybe meet at the Greenhouse after first period?" Zoe questioned, but Grace just couldn't stop looking at the girl. Something was different. She looked... older. And less bitchy. It was almost like Zoe had matured a year or two since the last time they were together, which was weird considering it really hadn't been that long at all.

Grace shook herself back to reality, realizing she hadn't answered the question yet. "I mean, I guess." She casually responded, as if she wasn't completely already freaking out over this. But not in the annoying 'what lip gloss should I wear?' way, but the 'holy shit, I have no idea what to do' way.

"Can't wait." Zoe gave Grace the slightest of smiles before glancing to Grace's lips for about a nano-second. Such a short glance, but it was definitely enough for Grace to notice, especially considering the fact that Grace's eyes were glued to Zoe's eyes. "I should...probably get to class." Zoe added, kind of weirdly.

"Sure thing. See you after first period." Grace kept it cool way better than Zoe ever could, which she found funny considering Zoe was supposed to be such a great actress. Zoe was still standing there, so Grace decided she had to be the one to walk away. "Bye." She added, immediately wanting to smack herself on the forehead for the unneeded extra words.

Grace began walking to her first class - History. Before she could walk through the doorway, it was blocked by a certain 'friend' of Zoe's. Tristan Milligan.

"What do you want, Milligan?" Grace tried to make it quick, knowing that it'd be some bullshit about Zoe. Probably him begging for details that Zoe wouldn't release. He obviously didn't know Grace very well if he thought she was one to gab and gossip.

What came of of Tristan's mouth, however, was not what Grace expected in the least. "Be careful with Zoe. She doesn't know what she wants, and honestly? I think this is just a cry for attention. I mean, the Degrassi Nudes thing has basically blown over, so she needs something to get people talking again. It makes sense. I just don't want someone else to get hurt because she seems to get off on hurting other people and stirring up drama. I mean, look at what she did to Maya."

Grace rolled her eyes. "I'm a big girl. I think I can handle Zoe Rivas on my own." She was incredibly annoyed at the fact that this boy thought it was okay to just bring his dumb conspiracy theories to her, like she couldn't tell if those were Zoe's intentions or not. They weren't. She didn't think they were, anyway. "I'll figure it out. I'm not an idiot. Now let me get to my history class before Perino rips me a new one, alright?" She shoved her way past Tristan without a problem, now feeling a little bit more than aggravated.

She sat down next to Maya. "Please don't say the Z word. I'm really not in the mood for more prodding today, and it's only 8am." She put her head in her hands. After just one kiss, a million people she didn't want to talk to were already all up in her grill. She couldn't even begin to imagine the shitstorm of drama that would take place if she actually _dated_ Zoe Rivas. Maybe this was more trouble than it would be worth.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4 / Zoe's POV

First period had been the longest hour of Zoe's young life. She was pretty sure she didn't hear a word that the new art teacher had said. She wasn't even 100% sure that when her name was called, she said present. If so, it wouldn't have been totally inaccurate. Though Zoe Rivas was physically there, in her mind, she was a million miles away.

She'd planned out the conversation perfectly. She knew exactly what she wanted to say to Grace, and it'd go perfectly...

That's what she thought up until she arrived at the Greenhouse. Grace hadn't arrived yet, but the fact that this was about to happen was enough to completely wipe Zoe's brain.

"I should've written it down." She spoke to herself, referencing her photographic memory.

"Talking to yourself? Did my lips turn you insane in the brain?" Grace appeared out of nowhere with tired-looking eyes that weren't there before first period. Maybe the other girl had spent the class agonizing just like Zoe. The way Grace had been acting, Zoe was worried if she even cared at all. She was wondering if she'd completely embarrassed herself with her little monologue at the beach, and ruined their friendship with the kiss. But maybe, just maybe, Grace was stressing this too, and that'd be a relief.

Not knowing how to get the ball rolling, Zoe just awkwardly glanced at the ground before looking back at Grace. "So, that really happened. We kissed."

The dead air terrified Zoe. Grace wasn't replying. Why wasn't she replying?

" _You_ kissed _me_ , yes." Grace corrected. Zoe felt like retorting with an insult, annoyed that Grace felt the need to correct her all the time. But she didn't. This wasn't exactly the time to be a bitch.

After contemplating what to say for what seemed like an eternity, but was probably just about ten seconds, Zoe sat down next to a potted plant in the greenhouse and replied. "Should I not have kissed you?"

Grace's lips pursed, and it looked like she was trying to figure out what to say. That couldn't be good, could it?

"I don't know, Zoe. I mean, I felt something this summer. Don't get me wrong, but..."

"But what?" Zoe replied within half a second.

Grace seemed to take some time to think before she spoke, which was hopefully good. "Zoe... Would this actually work? I mean, you barely know anything about me anyway, and I'm not like you. I don't like to share my entire life with everyone the way you do. Plus... How do I know you're not just using me?"

A flashback to the night where Grace blew up on Zoe immediately came to mind when the word 'using' came into play. Grace still thought Zoe was a user, which hurt an insane amount.

Unsure of how to reply to all of it, Zoe decided to just touch on the first part to begin with. "Then tell me things about yourself. I like what I've seen. You've seen most of me, unfortunately. What am I not going to like?" After about a minute went by without words, she knew she had to continue. "I'm changing. I mean, I'm trying to. You've helped me realize that the dramatic person I was wasn't me. It was just a cry for help and attention. I'm not gonna guarantee that I'm never going to mess up again, but I'm going to try to avoid drama if it's possible." She decided to disregard the part about her using Grace, because it hurt too much to touch on that subject.

The bell rang, and Zoe was surprised that so much time had passed. This conversation both felt like a few seconds and an eternity.

"Please, just...consider it. We can take things slow. Get to know each other. Whatever you want. I don't want to force you. If anything, I want to be friends, because you're a lot cooler than I thought you'd be. You like a lot of cool movies that I've never heard of. I can't get that one song out of my head, and I just... I want you around." These words felt foreign coming out of Zoe's mouth. She never imagined herself speaking like this, but here she was, a changed woman. It was just weird.

Grace stared for a minute, before pulling Zoe closer and doing the unexpected - placing a kiss on her lips, then interlacing her fingers with Zoe's. "I can't believe I'm about to sound so cheesy, but... I like you a lot, Zoe. I'm just afraid of what you can do to me. You see what you've done already, you've got me holding hands, confessing how I feel, almost pummeling dudes in the hallway, and considering being nicer to my sister. It's terrifying."

Zoe cocked her head. "What's this about a guy in the hallway?" She was concerned now.

"Don't worry about it, Rivas. I'll shut up anyone who has shit to say about you." She kissed Zoe once again before getting up and heading back to the school building. "Class time. We're already late."

Zoe was left sitting on the bench, her fingers touching her own lips where Grace's had been, wondering what the hell just happened. It took her a few more minutes before she felt steady enough to even consider getting up and going to class. She did, though, and she was a million percent sure that there wasn't a chance in hell she'd hear a word that Mr. Armstrong had to say, even if she attempted to listen.


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5 / Grace's POV

The events at the greenhouse had left Grace with a lot to think about. She definitely hadn't planned on kissing Zoe, or pretty much anything that she had said, but it happened, and she was kind of glad it did. There was still a lot to sort out, but there was a possibility that somewhere down the road, she might actually be the girlfriend of Zoe Rivas. Such a strange concept.

This year, Grace didn't have to report to the Rubber Room anymore, which was both relieving and a bit sad. She walked past the room, and a wave of nostalgia hit her. It was weird that she wasn't that girl anymore. She wasn't the girl who caused so much trouble that she needed to be remediated. Well, not yet anyway.

Last year, she'd gotten placed in there after she was caught hacking into the computers of the teachers and obtaining and selling copies of tests to fellow students. She definitely wasn't that person anymore, because she was a lot more careful with what she did in school, but was she still a bad girl? Was Grace Cardinal still a troublemaker?

No time to contemplate that. She was already extremely late to class because of Zoe Rivas and her damn soft lips, so she needed to hurry before she ended up in detention on day one.

Grace waltzed into Armstrong's math class like it was no big deal that she was late, and luckily for her, Armstrong had his back to the class, so he didn't notice her slip in and find a place at an empty desk in the back. Hopefully, he wouldn't notice. He turned around and continued talking, which confirmed that she had gotten lucky and she wouldn't end up in detention. A few kids around her high-fived her for not getting caught, but their attention was diverted to the door when another person arrived late. This person wasn't so lucky, because Armstrong noticed them immediately and pulled them into the hallway before Grace even saw who the sucker was.

"Sucks for them." She muttered to the guy beside her, Jack, who was also in the Rubber Room the year before.

"Yeah, your influence, I assume?" He cracked up, and Grace was confused. "What are you talking about?" She questioned, but her question was immediately answered when the mystery latecomer walked back in behind Armstrong. Zoe. Of course Zoe was in her class. "Shut up, asshole." Grace shoved Jack slightly now that she got the shitty joke he was making.

Armstrong stood at the front of the class with Zoe beside him, who looked absolutely humiliated. "Take Zoe as an example. I won't tolerate tardiness in here this year. She has detention this afternoon. Be on time." He sternly remarked, and Grace couldn't help but feel bad as the room filled with chuckles from her fellow students. Zoe noticed Grace and immediately furrowed her brows in an expression that screamed 'What the hell?' and Grace just shrugged, patting the seat beside her.

"I slipped in while he was facing the board. That'll teach you to be late on the first day." Grace teased once Zoe found her seat and stopped pouting about it. "I can throw a spitball or something to get detention too, if you want."

"A spitball? I thought you were badder than that. Maybe I'm the bad girl of this...whatever it is." Zoe teased back, but it kind of stung a bit considering Grace's earlier concerns about going soft.

Grace raised her brows and faced toward the class, pretending to pay attention as she tried to figure out whatever the hell she was going to do to be bad again. It wasn't that she felt the need to be bad, but she felt the need to be respected by the losers around her, and if she went soft, she'd be just as bad as them, and they'd treat her like shit. She'd finally gotten to a status where people didn't fuck with her at Degrassi, and she couldn't go back after getting used to that level.

Class ended and Grace knew she'd have to talk to Zoe as they left the class, which would only spark a ton of rumors and shit-talk. Perks of being...whatever they were... with Zoe Rivas. It'd only go downhill from here.

"Did I say something wrong?" Zoe seemed concerned as she packed her math book into her designer bag. Grace refrained from rolling her eyes. Who brings a purse that probably costs hundreds of dollars to this crap-hole? Zoe, apparently, who was honestly just asking for her bag to be stolen.

Grace shook her head. "No, you didn't say anything wrong, Zoe." She was short, which she knew Zoe would notice, but honestly? She didn't have much talk left in her. She thought that finding her classes would be her only concern on this day, but already, she was proven wrong. Was Zoe a distraction already? The two walked together in the hallway - Zoe following Grace to her locker.

"It's pretty cool that we have a class together, right?" Zoe leaned against the lockers, obviously trying really hard to keep a conversation going, which was...admirable, Grace guessed. She knew she shouldn't be shitty to Zoe, so she played into it the best she could.

"I guess so, yeah. Don't expect a ton of talking. When I'm in a math zone, the world is dead to me. It's kind of my best subject. Other than science, of course." She was reminded of the science class immediately upon saying those words, and a smile was repressed from her face. The memories made her feel things, which was kind of weird, but good, she guessed.

Zoe got the science reference, of course. "Hey, maybe we have science together. Wouldn't that be funny?" Zoe grinned. Grace hated to admit that it actually sounded nice to be in science with Zoe again. She liked the way Zoe's face lit up when she figured out something new in science, and she liked the way scientific words sounded coming out of the pretty girl's mouth. Grace only slightly wanted to bang her head against the lockers as she had these thoughts, which was an improvement, considering the fact that if she'd thought these things about anyone last year, she'd probably consider lighting her hair on fire.

Of course, the not-so-bad moment between the two girls had to be ruined as Zig Novak made an appearance. "Hey, girls. What are you up to?" He spoke, obviously teasing. Zig wasn't a bad guy, but he was definitely annoying at times, and one of his favorite things was to get under Grace's skin. It was sort of their thing, to get under each other's skin, but this wasn't the time, and Grace definitely wasn't in the mood to have Zig bugging the crap out of her.

"We're fine." Grace replied civilly, though the civility was contrasted by her slamming her locker.

Zig knew he was getting somewhere, so he didn't stop, even though he really should've.

"Are you guys like, a thing now?" Zig questioned. Grace knew that part of him just wanted to seriously know because they were friends, but she also knew that most of the reason he was asking was to get Grace annoyed.

Maya suddenly rushed up to the situation and grasped Zig's arm weirdly tight. "I told you not to bug Grace today." Maya scolded Zig as if he was her child. Grace flashed back to last year when Zig was a total badass and a sick feeling came over her. Is that what she'd turn into if she dated Zoe?

"I gotta go." Grace said to Zig, Zoe and Maya before rushing away to the nearest bathroom so she could splash her face with cold water and get a damn reality check.


End file.
